Surathkhal Point Lighthouse WLOL IND 114 (Mangalore - Dakshan Kannada - Karnataka) has been choosen for the 3rd International Lighthouse and Lightship Week of our country INDIA 7th to 22nd August 2010.  This is the our country's only ILLW Station for 2010 where Five in one activity was celebrated (1) Amateur (Ham) Radio (2) Lions Club (3) Phillatally (4) Lighthouse Enthusasts (5) India's Independence Day Celebrations

Directorate General of Lighthouse and Lightships, Ministry of Shipping, Government of India vide Letter No. 12/3/2010/D&P Dated 16th June 2010 and Director (Regional) Directorate of Lighthouses and Lightships, Mumbai vide Permission No. BLH/13-MT(52)/90 Dated 22nd July 2010 has permitted the Surathkal Point Lighthouse for 2010 ILLW operation.

Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Department of Telecommunications,  WPC Wing, Amateur Cell, Government of India has given Special Callsign VU0LH and special permission is accorded vide L-14011/639/2010-AMT dated 5th August 2010

The following are team members for INDIA 2010 ILLW

VU2LX - Laxmanan, VU2HEG - Mahabala Hegde, VU2JIX Prakash B Shetty, VU3DMP - Chetan Pujara, VU2JHM - Lion Ajoy, VU2LU - Ramesh Kumar, VU2SBJ - Srikanth Bhat, VU2FI - Sathyapal, VU2PAI - Ananth Ganapathi Pai, VU3FDU - Ashwin Attavar and VU3FDT Mahesh Raj Malpe

Special person at VU0LH was VU0020 SWL Vishwanath who has highest IOTA and Lighthouse Stations logged on - with his QSL and Certificates received albums - Great encouragement to all of us.  We had Sridhar from Surathkal and Mansoor Bolar from Mangalore Phillatilic Society who have subject of Ships, Lighthouses as their collection topics.

The team is assisted by Mangalore Amateur Radio Club friends as VU2RCT Chandra, VU2RDQ - Rohit, VU2MTT - Murthy, VU3BGS - Balakrishna Prabhu, VU2TAO - Gangadharan KV, VU2NYK - Yashavanth Nayak, VU2REC - Surathkal's NITK and many more.

The HF Station was right on the top just below the rotation mechnanism of the Lighthouse and the vertical antenna next to the Light. More HF antennas were around and foot of the Lighthouse where a guesthouse room was allocated to us.  On August 16th the Mangalore's Deputy Commissioner and District Magistrate Shri V. Ponnuraj IAS visited the Surathkal Lighthouse and this VU0LH to receive the Special Cover from Lions District 324-D5 Governor J.K. Rao MJF at an informal get-to-gether of Hams and Lions from Surathkal and Mangalore.

We did have a DX Ham working VU0LH from arriving ship into Mangalore UR3IDD/mm Eugen Gnilisa who was kind enough to visit the Surathkal Lighthouse Special Event Station and meet up with all of us.

PHOTOGRAPHS WEBLINK (Includes Special Cover image)http://picasaweb.google.com/lionajoy/VU0LHSurathkalIndia2010ILLW#

More official and technical details of the Lighthouse of Surathkal is on http://dgllnoida.gov.in/mumbai/SURATKAL.html The DGPS bearing for this lighthouse is on 320 KHz that is N 13 Degrees 00' 17".087 and E 074 Degrees 47'.23".287

All hams who make QSO with this special event station have to send their Address Label with two latest IRCs only (anything else gets stolen !)  to receive special QSL card in Special Cover with Pictorial Postal Cancellation of 18th Century Monumental Lighthouse of Mangalore (WLOL IND 171) would be a collector's item after the event.Details on http://mbstamps.blogspot.com/2008/06/permanent-cancellation-of-mangalore.html

Special Thanks to Lion William Mascarenhas Region 4 Chairman, Surathkal Lions Club, Lions District 324-D5 hosted the snacks and tea/coffee for the guests, lions and hams at the informal function held on 16th Aug 2010.

Thanks goes to the Phillatilic Magazines for covering this message online http://rainbowstampclub.blogspot.com/2010/08/new-special-covers.html  Mobile Phillatally for spreading this message of Special Cover http://mbstamps.blogspot.com/2010/08/surathkal-point-lighthouse.html

This event coincided with our country's 63rd Independence Day celebration on August 15 and VU2REC - Surathkal Regional Engineering College celebrating its Golden Jubliee Celebrations this August 2010.

More than 500 contacts have been made with 57 countries around the world and already the QSL cards have started coming - soon VU0LH cards will be printed and dispatched using the special cover for all direct QSL with 2 IRCs received we expect that by end of September 2010.

Best of 73's

de Lion Ajoy VU2JHM

Secretary, Bangalore Amateur Radio Club VU2ARC

Custodian, Lions Clubs International ARC VU2LCI

Postal Address.  Lion Ajoy VU2JHM, # 9/1, Kshitija, Opp Big Bazaar, 5-Cross, Malleswaram, BANGALORE-560003. Cell 91-9845355773 email lionajoy@yahoo.com

Spreading the Lions International President's Message "A Becon of Hope" across the world  http://www.lionsclubs.org/EN/lnn/video-view.php?id=32

With best complements from Amateur Radio Light House Society http://www.ARLHS.com , http://illw.org/ , http://illw.co.uk/  http://www.illw.net/ and World Light House Society

Our pervious lighthouse ILLW operations are on http://www.qrz.com/db/AT8LH and http://www.qrz.com/db/AT8LHC and looking for more assistance to activate more Lighthouse, Amateur Radio and Phillatilic activities in India.